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Word of the Day – Monday, March 4th |
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ALAI Jai
Alai (HY-lye): Game played in a court with a ball and a wickerwork
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Jai-Alai means "Merry Festival" in the Basque language. The term is used to denote a fronton (or open-walled arena) used to play a variety of Pelota called Cesta Punta, and, more broadly, to the game itself. The game is characterized by the fast pace of play, in which a 125g ball (or pelota) covered with parchment skin can travel faster than 180 mph. The ball is placed into play and volleyed by players wearing a wicker basket glove approximately 63 to 70 cm long. The glove, Cesta-punta (in Spanish) or xistera (Basque) was invented by the French Basque Gantchiqui Diturbide (also Gantxiki Iturbide) in the 19th century.
In countries such as France, Spain and Mexico the game of jai-alai is popular where, in some regions, the game is played in almost every town and city. In the United States, jai-alai enjoyed some popularity as a gambling alternative to horse racing and remains popular among gamblers in Florida, where the game is used as a basis for pari-mutuel gambling.
In contrast, the popularity of jai-alai in the north-eastern and western United States waned as other gambling options became available. As a result frontons in the Connecticut towns of Hartford and Milford permanently closed while the fronton in Bridgeport was converted to a Greyhound race track; and a fronton in Newport, Rhode Island had been converted to a main stream gambling facility replacing the fronton. Jai-Alai enjoyed a brief and popular stint in the western United States with the opening of a fronton at the MGM Grand Casino and Hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada however by the early 1980s the fronton was losing money and popularity and as a result MGM Grand owner Kirk Kerkorian decided to close the fronton and replace it with a more profitable entity.
This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Jai alai".
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